Molten metals have been used to treat hazardous materials, particularly hazardous organic materials. U.S. Pat. No. 5,000,101 to Wagner (the "Wagner Patent") discloses a molten metal reactor and reactant metal suitable for treating organic materials. U.S. Pat. No. 4,666,696 to Schultz (the "Schultz Patent") discloses a molten metal reactor for treating gaseous hazardous materials.
In a molten reactant metal treatment process, the molten reactant metal is contained in a reaction chamber purged of oxygen and the material to be treated is placed in contact with the molten reactant metal. As disclosed in the Wagner Patent, the molten reactant metal strips halogen atoms from organic materials, producing predominantly metal salts and liberating carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen. Much of the carbon goes to a gaseous state and releases from the molten reactant metal along with hydrogen gas and nitrogen gas. Some metal salts may also go to a gaseous state at the temperature of the molten reactant metal, and release from the molten reactant metal. Metal atoms released from the material being treated commonly alloy with the molten reactant metal. Other elements which do not react with the molten reactant metal, along with oxides (slag), some metal salts, and some of the liberated carbon may collect at the surface of the molten reactant metal as solids or liquids.
A difficulty may arise in treating gaseous materials or materials which include volatile components. The heat of the molten reactant metal quickly volatilizes volatile components and drives off the volatilized components along with other gaseous materials to be treated. The unreacted or partially reacted gaseous products which are out of contact with the reactant metal cannot chemically react with the reactant metal. Unreacted and partially reacted gaseous materials may undergo thermal decomposition after they separate from the molten reactant metal or may react with any reactant metal vapor phase which may reside near the surface of the molten reactant metal. However, the desired reaction with the molten reactant metal requires direct contact between the unreacted and partially reacted materials and the reactant metal.
The Wagner and Schultz Patents both disclose releasing the material to be treated below the surface of the molten reactant metal. Although this ensures some contact between the gaseous material and the molten reactant metal, the gaseous material rapidly escapes to the surface of the molten reactant metal and separates to the area above the surface of the molten metal and any associated metal vapor phase. The Schultz Patent discloses a reactor having a series of chambers above a molten metal bath and a series of baffles under which the gases must pass to reach the reactor outlet. However, the molten metal bath disclosed in the Schultz Patent has little contact with the gaseous material, particularly after slag or other solid reaction products collect at the surface of the molten reactant metal.